29 The Grass Is Greener

The story of the man who sought diamonds continues. Let us go back to Ali Hafed's old farm. The man who bought it was glad a stream ran through the farm. It provided cool water. One day the man led his camel there to drink. The camel put its nose into the clear water. Then the man noticed a curious flash of light. He put his hand into the white sands and pulled out a black stone. It had an eye of light that flashed. He took the stone into the house. He placed it on the mantel. It was just a pretty pebble. He forgot about it.

The same old monk came to meet the new owner. The men visited for a while. Then the monk saw the flash of light from the mantel. He rushed up and said, "This is a diamond. Has Ali Hafed returned?"

"No, Ali Hafed has not returned," replied the farmer. "Anyway, that's just a stone. I found it right out here in the stream." The monk replied, "I know a diamond when I see one. This is a diamond."

The two men rushed to the stream. They stirred the white sands. Their fingers brought up stones more beautiful than the first. The site at that stream became a famous one. It was the home of the great diamond mines of Golconda. The diamonds from this mine grace regal crowns. One is part of the crown jewels of England. Another, the largest diamond on earth, is part of Russia's crown jewels.

The stones were right in Ali Hafed's backyard. He could have stayed home and found them.

29 這山望著那山高

那個尋找鑽石的人的故事還在繼續。讓我們回到阿里·哈菲德的舊農場。買下它的人很高興有一條小溪流過農場。它提供了清涼的水。一天，那個人牽著他的駱駝去那裡喝水。駱駝把鼻子伸進清澈的水中。接著，那個人注意到一道奇特的光芒閃過。他把手伸進白色的沙子裡，掏出了一塊黑色的石頭。石頭上有個閃閃發光的亮點。他把石頭帶進屋裡，放在壁爐架上。那不過是顆漂亮的小石子，他後來就忘了它。

同一位老僧侶前來拜訪新主人。兩人聊了一會兒。接著，僧侶看到了壁爐架上閃爍的光芒。他衝上前說：「這是鑽石。難道阿里·哈菲德回來了嗎？」

「沒有，阿里·哈菲德沒有回來，」農夫回答。「再說，那不過是塊石頭。我就在外面小溪裡找到的。」僧侶回答：「我一看就知道是鑽石。這就是鑽石。」

兩人衝到小溪邊。他們攪動白色的沙子，手指撈出了比第一顆更漂亮的石頭。那條小溪的地點後來變得非常有名，它就是偉大的戈爾康達鑽石礦的所在地。來自這個礦區的鑽石點綴著皇家的王冠。其中一顆是英國王室珠寶的一部分；另一顆，也就是世界上最大的鑽石，則是俄國王室珠寶的一部分。

這些寶石原本就在阿里·哈菲德的後院。他本可以待在家裡就發現它們。